ウォールストリートジャーナル/ダウジョーンズに筆者のコメントが出ています

安倍首相の先日の第二弾成長戦略会見に対す る筆者の見解が米国ウォールストリ ートジャーナルに記載されていた 。(2日前) Abe Seeks to Get Japanese Businesses to Spend May 17, 2013, 8:01 a.m. ET TOKYO—Prime Minister Shinzo Abe pledged action Friday to encourage businesses to increase their spending as he seeks to turn recent improvements in the economy into sustainable growth. In a speech to business leaders and academics, Mr. Abe said he would remove barriers preventing capital spending and seek to raise it by 10%, to around ¥70 trillion or $680 billion, in three years—the level seen before the 2008 financial crisis. The comments shed further light on the direction the prime minister will take with the next stage of his "Abenomics" policies for invigorating and deregulating Japan's economy, ahead of a more comprehensive announcement planned for June. Gross domestic product figures released Thursday showed better-than-expected growth amid a wave of optimism surrounding the administration's aggressive stance on the economy. But capital spending fell, suggesting that companies are still reluctant to bet on the future. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe offering a toast Friday, as he presented a plan to spur capital spending "In any sector, companies that make bold investments win, and those that do so halfheartedly lose," the prime minister said. "I will sweep away any impediments to domestic investment, whatever they may be." He said the government was ready to take measures on taxes, regulation and spending to push up domestic investment from ¥62.6 trillion in the fiscal year that ended March 31. One idea is the use of financial instruments to mitigate risks for companies investing in manufacturing facilities, Mr. Abe added, without offering details. Mr. Abe's economic policies are comprised of what he calls three arrows—fiscal stimulus, monetary easing and pro-growth measures. Since taking office in late December, the first two have been implemented, including a ¥92.6 trillion budget for this fiscal year, the largest ever, and the switch to a far more aggressive easing stance by the Bank of Japan to reverse a long, damaging stretch of deflation. The steps have boosted stock prices and improved consumer sentiment, and the GDP figures are the strongest indication yet that Abenomics is starting to feed into the real economy. "Gross domestic product for the January-March quarter showed an annualized growth of 3.5%," Mr. Abe said. "I feel that things may have started to change." But the GDP data showed that corporate investment fell 0.7%, marking the fifth straight quarter of declines. That prompted analysts—as well as Mr. Abe—to stress that its recovery would be important for the economy to enter a long-lasting growth cycle. "Now is the time to induce corporate investment by shooting the 'third arrow'," Mr. Abe said. Government officials said specific steps to beef up corporate investment are still being discussed, but they are thinking about making better use of leasing systems to enable companies to access and use new technologies more quickly. One example, a government official said, would be an insurance program that would cover potential losses from leasing contracts if unexpected global economic developments were to occur. Another step Mr. Abe mentioned was to make leasing systems more flexible so that companies pay less if factory operating ratios turn out to be lower than initially expected. The leasing industry appeared to welcome such moves. "It wouldn't be bad news for the leasing industry if the government agreed to shoulder some of the risks of large leasing deals. Any government assistance on this front is certainly welcome," a leasing company official said. Toshihiro Nagahama, chief economist at Dai-ichi Life Research Institute, said it would be a good start for trying to boost capital spending, adding that the ¥70 trillion goal is achievable. But he and other analysts said that leasing alone won't be enough to fuel capital investment to the extent needed to make Japan Corp. more competitive in the international arena. "A favorable leasing program would be far from enough to revive the Japanese electronics industry," said Yoshihisa Toyosaki, president and chief executive of the consulting firm Architect Grand Design Inc. "There are other factors handicapping Japanese electronics manufacturers, such as rising electricity rates and higher tax rates." The government is also well aware of the squeeze on operating costs that power prices are causing. Economy Minister Akira Amari said Friday that restarting nuclear power plants is necessary to bolster capital spending since a stable and inexpensive power supply is a prerequisite. Because of safety concerns following the March 11, 2011, earthquake and nuclear disaster, only two out of 50 reactors are currently operating. In his speech, Mr. Abe also pledged to triple Japan's overseas sales of infrastructure to ¥30 trillion in the next two decades, saying that both he and other senior administration officials will take a greater role in helping promote such sales. He also said he would double the income of farmers in the coming 10 years. Stronger exports of pop culture and food as well as making Japanese universities more attractive to foreign students were other issues he touched upon. Mr. Abe was expected to make another speech in early June that will outline his plans for creating special economic zones, before the government unveils its full package of growth-promoting measures in mid-June. —Mitsuru Obe contributed to this article.